Ipswich CBD vaccination clinic: Eligible vulnerable kids turned away for jab
Parents who booked their eligible children in to get the jab at an Ipswich vaccination clinic were told they could not get the vaccine despite securing an appointment.
Ipswich
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Parents who booked their vulnerable children in to get the Covid-19 vaccine at Ipswich’s major clinic were turned away inside the facility as it was not set up to give them the jab.
Children aged between 12 and 15 with specific medical conditions that increase their risk of severe Covid-19, who identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander or live in a remote community became eligible for the Pfizer vaccine from August 9.
One Ipswich mother booked her son in online for August 22 at the city’s CBD community clinic, which has already delivered more than 15,000 jabs in the month it has been open.
The online booking system told her that her son was eligible to be booked in at clinics in Ipswich and Springfield.
“Armed with relevant documents of medical history, we proceeded to line up with others in the queue,” she said.
“A triage nurse asked who the vaccine was for and when told it was for (my son) they advised us that unfortunately they were unable to proceed with the vaccination at the centre.
“The reason being that there are no paediatric nurses or resuscitation equipment on site to cater for such.
“She mentioned that they had already turned about 10 families away that morning and that Queensland Health had been made aware. She suggested to contact a list of GP clinics - a list was given on paper - or book at the Queensland Children’s Hospital.
“What concerned me was that people were able to book an appointment at a facility that was not prepared for paediatric patients.
“People may have made arrangement to travel a distance to attend said appointment only to be turned away.”
The mum said she received a voice message on her phone a few days later from a nurse at the vaccine hub telling her that it was best to book into the Queensland Children’s Hospital.
She decided to book an appointment in with the family’s GP.
A Queensland Health spokesperson said it was working to operationalise vaccinations for this cohort across the state.
“Given some children may present with complex medical needs, we need to ensure systems and processes within our vaccination centres can safely cater for these children,” they said.
“Many of our hospital and health services are already providing the Covid-19 vaccine to eligible children, with others to come online throughout September.
“We are working to operationalise vaccinations for this cohort across the state, with support from paediatrics staff, and ensure appropriate protocols are in place to vaccinate young people.
“Our priority is ensuring the health and safety of Queenslanders.”
Queensland Health has delivered more than 37,800 vaccine doses in the West Moreton region so far.
About 20,600 of those have been at the Ipswich Hospital and 15,313 at the CBD clinic to date, which only opened on July 20.
Eligible people in Queensland can also access the Pfizer vaccine through their GP.
Specified medical conditions that increase the risk of severe COVID-19 include severe asthma, diabetes, obesity, cardiac and circulatory congenital anomalies, neuro developmental disorders, epilepsy and being immuno-compromised.
Visit here to check your eligibility.
Read more stories by Lachlan McIvor here.
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